By Elder Dr MASIMBA MAVAZA
Sabbath School Summary
COVENANT SIGN
Lesson 9
BY ELDER MASIMBA MAVAZA
Memory Text:
“Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant” (Exodus 31:16).
INTRODUCTION
The Week at a Glance: Where does the Sabbath have its origins? What evidence proves that the Sabbath existed before Sinai? What makes the Sabbath such an appropriate covenant sign?
The seventh-day Sabbath is like a nail that—Thwack!—with unbroken regularity returns us each week to the foundation of all that we are or could be. We are so busy, running to and fro, spending money, making money, going here, going there, going everywhere, and then—Thwack!—Sabbath comes and reattaches us to our foundation, the starting point of everything that follows, because everything that is anything to us becomes that only because God created it and us to begin with.
With unceasing regularity, and with no exceptions, the Sabbath silently hurls over the horizon and into every crack and cranny of our lives. It reminds us that every crack and cranny belongs to our Maker, the One who put us here, the One who “in the beginning” created the heavens and the earth, an act that remains the irrefutable foundation of all Christian belief and of which the seventh-day Sabbath—Thwack!—is the irrefutable, unobtrusive, and unyielding sign.
SABBATH: God gave men six days to labor & a day (7th-day Sabbath) to rest as a memorial of God’s work at creation. The God who created work also created rest. On this holy day, men were to rest their eyes on God & rest from all their anxieties. The six days of toil were to be crowned with a day of rest. The 7th-day Sabbath tells us that God is the Creator & we belong to Him. It was a sign at the Sinai covenant.
SUNDAY: Christ plainly revealed that the holy Sabbath was made for “man” (all humanity) in Mark 2:27. The Sabbath existed before any Jew. It is false to assert that the Sabbath was made only for Jews. The day is of a divine origin & is made as a blessing for all humanity. God made it & rested in it (Gen. 2:2, 3; Exod. 20:11). God set an example for us by resting to invite us to rest too. Sabbath rest in God is forever.
MONDAY: A vivid equation of the Sabbath to the 7th-day is first seen in Exodus 16. Even before the Sinai covenant, the Sabbath was to be kept holy (Exod. 16:23-28). God rained manna for Israel each day except the Sabbath. From the 6th day, they were to take extra for the Sabbath. Hoarded manna got stale except the one preserved for the Sabbath. The manner story tells us when is preparation day & Sabbath.
TUESDAY: God’s covenant of grace was sealed by a “sign”, the Sabbath (Exod. 31:13, 16, 17; Ezek. 20:12, 20). The Sabbath as a sign meant an outward mark or condition that conveys a peculiar message. Thus, the Sabbath communicates the theme of grace & redemption. It is not a sign of salvation by works as some people think (see Gen. 2:3, Heb. 4:1-4, Deut. 5:13-15). The day connects us to God’s saving grace.
WEDNESDAY: True sanctification comes by knowing God (Exod. 31:13). To know God is to “serve” Him (1 Chron. 28:9), to “fear” Him (Isa. 11:2), to “believe” Him (Isa. 43:10), to “trust” & “seek” Him (Ps. 9:10) & to “call on” His name (Jer. 10:25). The Sabbath is an eternal, visible, & external sign of knowing God & being sanctified by Him (Exod. 31:12-17, Lev. 20:8; Deut. 7:6, 6T, p. 350). God also justifies!
THURSDAY: “Remember” as used in the Sabbath law implies a past, present, & future obligation (Exod. 20:8). It calls us to look back at creation which was crowned with the weekly rest, informs us to keep it holy in our lives, & assures us of an eternal future with the Lord of the Sabbath (Deut. 5:12, 14). In it we have creation & re-creation theme. The former makes the latter possible. God creates & redeems.
FRIDAY: The first four of the Ten Commandments points to our relationship with God & the last six spells our relationship with men. Thus, we’re to have supreme love for God & unselfish love for man. At the center of the Decalogue is the Sabbath law. This law reveals the identity of God (Yahweh), who is the Creator, & the sphere of God’s ownership & authority (Exod. 20:11, 31:13, 16, 17, & 7BC, pp. 980, 981).
—Ellen G. White, pp. 968-970, in The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7; “The Observance of the Sabbath,” pp. 349-351, in Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6; “From the Red Sea to Sinai,” pp. 295-297, in Patriarchs and Prophets, & The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7, pp. 980, 981.
Keywords
6T- Testimonies for the Church, Volume 6
7BC- The SDA Bible Commentary, Volume 7
Manna- Also known as “angel’s food”. The miracle of the manner tells us when is the preparation day, the Sabbath, origin of the Sabbath, what the Sabbath day should be like, whether the day is for fasting or not, & how the day is a test of loyalty to God.
Captions
SUNDAY- Origins
MONDAY- Sabbath Before Sinai
TUESDAY- Covenant Sign
WEDNESDAY- Sign Of Sanctification
THURSDAY- Remembering The Sabbath
Discussion Questions
📌 Read Leviticus 19:30. Notice how it links the sanctuary and the Sabbath. Considering what we have learned so far about what the Sabbath is a sign of, why does that linkage make so much sense?
📌 Ask yourself this question: Has Sabbath keeping helped strengthen my walk with the Lord? If not, what changes can you make?
Entire Lesson Summary
The Sabbath is a covenant sign that reaches forward to the time when the plan of salvation will be consummated. It points back to Creation, and as a sign of the covenant of grace, it points us to the final re-creation, when God makes all things new.
By Elder Dr MASIMBA MAVAZA
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